Flexible Honing Tools for Aerospace and Aviation Applications

Brush Research Manufacturing (BRM) provides flexible honing tools and deburring brushes to aerospace companies, aircraft manufacturers, jet engine builders, and aviation MROs. Made in the USA, BRM’s Diamond Flex-Hone® is the surface finishing tool of choice for leading aerospace companies such as Sikorsky Global Helicopter. BRM’s unique Flex-Hone® technology is also used to solve difficult surface finishing problems at NAS North Island, the U.S. Navy’s Naval Air Station (NAS) on San Diego Bay. 

The Diamond Flex-Hone® for Aerospace Materials

The Diamond Flex-Hone® is designed for rapid cut-rates, excellent heat dissipation, and optimal surface finish. Made with resin-bonded diamond crystals, BRM’s diamond honing tool is self-sharpening with a nickel-coated abrasive that provides excellent crystal retention. The Diamond Flex-Hone® comes in standard sizes from 4-mm to 1-1/2 and is available in three mesh sizes (170/2000, 800, and 2500 grit).

Designed for use with any type of cylinder, Diamond Flex-Hone® technology is ideal for deburring, edge blending, and surface finishing hard materials such as carbide and ceramic. BRM’s flexible ball hones are also ideal for use with base materials such as heat-treated steel, high nickel stainless steels, MMX aluminum alloys, titanium, space age alloys, and chromed and plated metals.

The Flex-Hone® for Cross-Hole Deburring and Chamfer Blending 

Brush Research Manufacturing also provides the aviation and aerospace industry with flex ball hones for surface finishing applications such as cross-hole deburring. Traditionally, deburring cross-drilled holes was an expensive, time-consuming operation that required elaborate setups. Yet because BRM’s Flex-Hone® tool is self-centering and self-aligning to the bore, today’s machinists can create clean, radiused intersections with improved speed and accuracy.

The aviation and aerospace industry also uses BRM cylinder hones to chamfer blend jet-engine components.  Available in a variety of grit sizes and abrasive types, this engine hone blends and radiuses sharp edges, removes microburrs on chamfered holes, and eliminates stress risers caused by the chamfering operation. The Flex-Hone® for chamfer blending speeds surface finishing operations and is suitable for use with titanium, Inconel®, super CVM, and nickel-based stainless steel alloys.   

Aircraft and Aerospace Brushes

BRM’s aircraft and aerospace brushes are also used for parts cleaning, precision deburring after machining or grinding, and for blending surface imperfections and consistencies. By finding innovative ways to solve difficult surface finishing problems, Brush Research continues to support manufacturing and machining both here in the U.S. and around the world.

Do you use BRM’s Flex-Hone® or Diamond Flex-Hone® tools with aviation or aerospace components? Could your business benefit by using BRM’s brushing technology? If so, please comment on this blog entry. We’d like to hear from you!